- Author : Mireille Guiliano
- Binding : Hardcover
- Dewey Decimal Number : 613.25
- EAN : 9781400042128
- Edition : 1
- ISBN : 1400042127
- Label : Knopf
- List Price : $24.95 (USD)
- Manufacturer : Knopf
- Number Of Items : 1
- Number Of Pages : 272
- Package Dimensions : 1.10 inches (Height) x 8.30 inches (Length) x 1.00 pounds (Weight) x 5.60 inches (Width)
- Publication Date : 2004-12-28
- Publisher : Knopf
- Release Date : 2004-12-28
- Studio : Knopf
- UPC : 978140004212
The message of this book could be a blessing or a curse, depending on your perspective. There is no hard science, no clearly-defined plan, and no lists of food to have or have not; instead, you'll find simple tricks that boil down to eating carefully prepared seasonal food, exercising more and refusing to think of food as something that inspires guilt. It's both a practical message and far easier said than done in today's "no pain, no gain" culture. Author Mireille Guiliano is CEO of Veuve Clicquot, and French Women Don't Get Fat offers a concept of sensible pleasures: If you have a chocolate croissant for breakfast, have a vegetable-based lunch--or take an extra walk and pass on the bread basket at dinner. Guiliano's insistence on simple measures slowly creating substantial improvements are reassuring, and her suggestion to ignore the scale and learn to live by the "zipper test" could work wonders for those who get wrapped up in tiny details of diet. She sympathizes that deprivation can lead straight to overindulgence when it comes to favorite foods, but then, in a most French manner, treats them as a pleasure that needs to be sated, rather than a battle to be fought. A number of recipes are included, from a weight-loss enhancing leek soup to a lush chocolate mousse; they read more like what you'd find in a French cookbook rather than an American diet book. Most appealingly, these are guidelines and tricks that could be easily sustainable over a lifetime. If you agree that food is meant to be appreciated--but no more so than having a trim waist--these charmingly French recommendations could set you on the path to a future filled with both croissants and high fashion. --Jill Lightner Amazon Exclusive Video Click here to watch Mireille Guiliano introduce French Women Dont Get Fat to Amazon customers. Gather Up Your Friends Click here to learn how to create your own reading group around French Women Dont Get Fat. Stuffed Cornish Hens Serves 4 When I grew up, the holidays always meant lots of visitors and a series of requisite celebratory meals, mostly at lunchtime. This easy dish was always on one of the menus. Mamie was usually busy (what else during late December?) and would make the stuffing in advance so lunch could be ready in less than an hour. The recipe serves a family of four for lunch in style, but double the ingredient portions and obviously you are ready for a full table with guests. Ingredients: 2 Cornish hens (or poussins) 2 tablespoons butter, melted 3 tablespoons chicken stock Stuffing: 2 cups water 2/3 cup brown rice 1/2 cup mixed nuts (pine nuts, walnut pieces, whole hazelnuts) 2 tablespoons golden raisins 1/3 cup chicken stock 1 tablespoon parsley, freshly minced 1 teaspoon dry herbs (chervil and savory or rosemary and thyme) Salt and freshly ground pepper 1. For stuffing: Bring water to a boil. Add rice and cook for 15 minutes. Drain and mix well with remaining ingredients. Season to taste and refrigerate overnight. 2. Preheat oven to 475 degrees. Rinse Cornish hens, dry the inside with paper towels, and season. Add stuffing loosely and truss hens. Reserve remaining stuffing in aluminum foil. 3. Put hens in baking dish and brush them with melted butter and other seasonings. Put in oven and baste 10 minutes later with chicken stock. Continue basting every 10 minutes. After the hens have cooked for 20 minutes reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees and put the remaining stuffing in a small ovenproof dish. Roast the hens for another 20 minutes. Serve (half a hen per person) immediately with a tablespoon of stuffing on each side of the hen as garnish. N.B. For a wonderful tête-à-tête romantic dinner, serve one hen each with a vegetable then dessert. I have prepared it successfully to my husband on Valentines Day. While the hens are in the oven, you have time to concoct a little dessert, et voilà, you can pop a cork of bubbly, sit for candlelight dinner and have your husband serve dessert. Hot Chocolate Soufflé Serves 6 During the season of overindulgencesChristmas, New Year and all the festivities in betweenthere is in our home a succession of store-brought, traditional goodies: Bûche de Noël (yule log), marrons glacés (glazed chestnuts), the 13 desserts of Christmas in Provence. This is not to say that the holidays dont bring out the baker in all of us, but whether it is to give as gifts or to maintain tradition, people do load up with holiday sweets from pastry shops (as I can attest from seeing from the window of our Paris apartment the annual long lines of people outside the pastry shop across the street). When I grew up, however, come New Years Day, and there was a home-cooked chocolate ritual. Our big festive meal was on New Years Eve, which left New Years Day as a quiet, family "recovery" day. (I appreciate some reverse the big meal day or have one both days.) Anyway, for us, breakfast was well late (especially for those of us who went partying after dinner), and limited to a piece of toast and a cup or two of coffee. Lunch was mid afternoon and usually made up of leftovers or an omelet, but the first dinner of the year was marked with a special dessert. The simple meal at the end of a week of overindulgences consisted of a light consommé, some greens, cheese, and the chocolate treat. There were no guests, plenty of time, and Mamie was ready for the flourless soufflé. She is a chocoholic and it would be unthinkable to start the year off without chocolate. So, what better way to end the first day of the New Year than with one of her favorite chocolate desserts as both a reward and Im sure good-luck charm? Ingredients: 1 cup milk 1 cup unsweetened Dutch cocoa powder 1/3 cup sugar 4 eggs at room temperature 2 tablespoons butter at room temperature Pinch of salt 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prepare a 1-quart soufflé mold by lightly buttering it, dusting the insides with sugar and tapping out the excess. Place mold in refrigerator. 2. Pour the milk, cocoa powder and sugar into a heavy saucepan and stir to combine. Bring to a boil over moderate heat while stirring constantly. Reduce the heat and cook while stirring until the mixture thickens (about 10 minutes). Transfer to a bowl and cool slightly. 3. Separate the eggs and stir the egg yolks into the warm chocolate mixture. Stir in the butter. 4. Beat the egg whites until they reach soft peaks. Add the salt and beat until stiff. Whisk half of the egg whites mixture into the chocolate mixture. Fold in the remaining whites gently with a spatula. Pour the mixture in the soufflé mold and smooth the top. 5. Bake in the lower-middle shelf of the oven until puff and brown for about 18 minutes which will give you a soft center. Serve at once with softly whipped cream. Red Mullet with Spinach en Papillote Serves 4 Ingredients: 2 teaspoons olive oil 8 fillets of red mullet, about 2 ounces each 1 lb. spinach, washed and dried in a salad spinner 4 teaspoons shallots, peeled and sliced 8 slices of lime 4 tablespoons of crème fraîche Salt and freshly ground pepper 1. Cut 4 pieces of parchment paper (or aluminum foil) into squares large enough to cover each fillet and leave a 2-inch border all around. Lightly brush the squares with olive oil. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. 2. Put the spinach in the center of each square and top it with a tablespoon of crème fraîche. Top with two fillets and add one teaspoon of shallots, two slices of lime. Season with salt and pepper. 3. Fold up the edges to form packets. Put the papillotes on a baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes. Serve at once by setting each papillote on a plate. N.B. You can use sole or snapper instead of red mullet Pappardelle with Spring Veggies Serves 4 Ingredients: 12 ounces pappardelle 1 lb. green asparagus 2 cups fresh peas, shelled 2 tablespoons of shallots, peeled and minced 1 cup extra virgin olive oil 1 cup of pine nuts, toasted 1 cup freshly grated parmesan 1 cup roughly chopped parsley Coarse sea salt and freshly ground pepper 1. Cut off end of asparagus and blanch in salted water until just tender (about 5 minutes). Blanch peas separately for about 1 minute. 2. In a heavy saucepan, gently sauté the shallots in olive oil until they begin to turn gold. Add peas and asparagus and cook for a few minutes. 3. Cook the pappardelle in boiling water, drain and pour into saucepan. Add pine nuts, parmesan and parsley and season to taste. Serve immediately. Croque aux Poires Serves 4 Ingredients: 4 slices of brioche 2 ripe pears 2 tablespoons of sliced almonds 2 tablespoons of honey 1 tablespoon butter 1. Peel the pears and cut into small cubes. Melt butter in a saucepan and sauté the pear cubes for 2-3 minutes. 2. Arrange pear cubes on brioche slices. Cover with honey and almonds. Put under broiler for two minutes watching carefully. Serve warm with a dollop of sour cream or crème fraîche. A yummy dessert also wonderful for a weekend breakfast or brunch.
- Amazon.com Review
Stylish, convincing, wise, funny–and just in time: the ultimate non-diet book, which could radically change the way you think and live.French women don’t get fat, but they do eat bread and pastry, drink wine, and regularly enjoy three-course meals. In her delightful tale, Mireille Guiliano unlocks the simple secrets of this “French paradox”–how to enjoy food and stay slim and healthy. Hers is a charming, sensible, and powerfully life-affirming view of health and eating for our times.As a typically slender French girl, Mireille (Meer-ray) went to America as an exchange student and came back fat. That shock sent her into an adolescent tailspin, until her kindly family physician, “Dr. Miracle,” came to the rescue. Reintroducing her to classic principles of French gastronomy plus time-honored secrets of the local women, he helped her restore her shape and gave her a whole new understanding of food, drink, and life. The key? Not guilt or deprivation but learning to get the most from the things you most enjoy. Following her own version of this traditional wisdom, she has ever since relished a life of indulgence without bulge, satisfying yen without yo-yo on three meals a day. Now in simple but potent strategies and dozens of recipes you’d swear were fattening, Mireille reveals the ingredients for a lifetime of weight control–from the emergency weekend remedy of Magical Leek Soup to everyday tricks like fooling yourself into contentment and painless new physical exertions to save you from the StairMaster. Emphasizing the virtues of freshness, variety, balance, and always pleasure, Mireille shows how virtually anyone can learn to eat, drink, and move like a French woman. A natural raconteur, Mireille illustrates her philosophy through the experiences that have shaped her life–a six-year-old’s first taste of Champagne, treks in search of tiny blueberries (called myrtilles) in the woods near her grandmother’s house, a near-spiritual rendezvous with oysters at a seaside restaurant in Brittany, to name but a few. She also shows us other women discovering the wonders of “French in action,” drawing examples from dozens of friends and associates she has advised over the years to eat and drink smarter and more joyfully. Here are a culture’s most cherished and time-honored secrets recast for the twenty-first century. For anyone who has slipped out of her zone, missed the flight to South Beach, or accidentally let a carb pass her lips, here is a buoyant, positive way to stay trim. A life of wine, bread–even chocolate–without girth or guilt? Pourquoi pas?
- Product Description
Customer Reviews:
Customers rated French Women Don't Get Fat: The Secret of Eating For Pleasure 4.0 stars out of 5.0 based on 421 reviews:Good sense.
by Smokey (USA) - 2010-08-24
This book echos my views, and it's good to read them when I need a tuneup of how I'm doing with my nutrition and life. It just makes sense. Diets don't work. Well maybe except Weight Watchers, but that is also a lifetime change. I love the idea of enjoying all great food, but changing how it's enjoyed and in what amounts. I really agree with not making a habit of sugar free and fat free. I don't feel this book is condescending to Americans and a snooty idea of French is better either. We have bad eating habits and not enough moving. It's just a fact. Maybe some sweeping generalizations are made, but they make good sense. I totally disagree however with 48 hours of leek soup only. Just not healthy. So, when I did it I did the alternative soup with more veggies and I had eggs, fish, chicken in the amounts needed to meet protein requirements of 48 hours. I can't do veggie only for that long and not get dizzy and too weak. Doing this I'm down 10 pounds from where I started these changes, or rather got back to it, and find I can keep it up (mostly, who doesn't have more indulgent days) and enjoy food and life!A Common Sense Approach to Eating
by K. Shannon - 2010-08-19
I bought this book out of curiosity: I wondered what the rage was all about. What was it that this French woman writes that changes the way American women view and eat food? What I found is this... there isn't much to learn from Guiliano's book that you cannot think of on your own if you've ever paid attention to what goes into your body. Eating natural, non-processed foods (from the perimeter of the grocery store or if you're lucky the Farmer's Market) that do not have an ingredient label attached is what we should be eating. It, in my opinion, isn't some big reveal. We should have to be taught to choose an apple over a bag of potato chips, but many of us don't, unfortunately and it's lead to an epidemic in obesity. Guiliano writes common sense: eat fresh, organic foods, mostly fruits and veggies in smaller portions. Drink loads of water. She adds blips and blurbs about enjoying life, savoring the moment of everything as if it is some top secret piece of information. Anyone, could have written this book, but since it's written by a French woman, it seems that American women revere this as some sort of sacred text. Perhaps, I'm one of the lucky ones; I grew up with a vegetable garden in the back yard. However, if Guiliano's book is what it takes to get you to be healthy, so be it. I didn't do the "diet", and when I read the magic soup business, I nearly shelved the book. I disagree with the entire "recasting" section. And the magic leek soup weekend is bogus, in my opinion. Guiliano contradicts herself by writing later that "French women never get hungry". If one is not to get hungry, how can you drink leek broth for 48 hours and not get hungry? I will say that there are some wonderful and very easy to make recipes in the book that I've tried and have incorporated into my day-to-day life. And, I've changed my view of champagne. Why do we have to wait for a special occasion? Drink up! If you're looking for an easy read, and a different way to approach food then I say buy the book. What can it hurt? You may learn a thing or two, or you may just realized that this could be a marketing ploy targeted at American women because we're so gullible when it comes to weight loss.Great reference, not final solution for me
by chitownfish (Chicago IL) - 2010-08-18
I wanted this book to work so badly, but it just didn't stick. It may for some, so I don't want to discourage anyone from reading it. There are many good points. I read it several times. I wanted to lead a French lifestyle. I lost weight in the recasting phase and felt great. However, eating smaller portions, "passing the bread basket" and taking a "forkful of dessert and passing it on" began to feel like deprivation to me, and I'd make up for it later by eating more, exactly what the author doesn't want you to feel! I would eat "badly" and picture Mireille shaking her head. After more exploring, I realized what was missing in the book was mindset advice for longtime dieters like me. Like many, I had so much knowledge of calories, carbs and portion size, and now how the French ate, so why wasn't I thin yet? Why did my discipline only last weeks, not forever? Mirelle was only "fat" once, and the people she helps in her book seem a little clueless, like, "wow, I am eating like crap, why am I fat?" What do you do when you know exactly what to do, but have trouble doing it? I found several books on "Intuitive Eating" and these seem more geared toward what will work for me. In general, they support what Mirelle mentions, but focus on how a dieting mentality like mine can sabotage efforts to eat better. Dividing foods into "good" and "bad," substituting low-fat foods for foods that you really, really want eventually makes you go nuts. I needed help getting rid of that mindset. I'm now working through that and find myself still referring back to French Women. Although Mireille's diagnosis of the American eating problem is mostly accurate (eating on the run, large portion sizes, bad quality, lack of fruit), she does not address at all the conundrum of "I know what to do but can't seem do it." What I am taking from French Women is this: * Importance of the ritual of eating & respecting food, courses, soups * Really focusing on the taste of food, and appreciating good quality, in-season foods, and taking the time to prepare things from scratch, even simple things. * Good ideas for delicious meals (recipes are good, and easy to adapt to make your own twists) * Encouragement to try entirely new foods (I've eaten many more herbs, leeks, shallots, mushrooms, etc.) * Tips for breaking bad habits (highly sugared coffee, etc.) You'll see many food and nutrition experts recommend eating more French or Japanese. Mireille is able to explain pretty clearly how most French people eat and exercise, and that part is a good guide and why I still use this book as a handbook. I found the tone friendly and warm, and enjoyed the author's unique perspective as being both French and American and loving both cultures. However, the author does not have children and leads a privileged, urban lifestyle which might turn some people off. Her advice about teaching kids to eat fly in the face of some of the books on kids' food I've read (e.g. - she says to make them eat their dinner based on dessert as a "reward" -- most American books say not to do this because you make the "reward" seem too special), but if it works for the French I'll have to explore this kid thing some more. Finally, there is not a ton of direction about what to eat day-to-day, or about which foods have a ton of calories and which don't. It's not rocket science - most who have been on other diets will know this, but the book does assume at least a basic knowledge of nutrition. For those who have criticized this book as being a simple prescription of eat less, exercise more, it's not. It's a good guide on how to eat more like the French do, and they really have it down. Everyone who wants to change needs a mindset change, or practical tips and tricks that resonate with them - whether you want to get out of debt, be more productive, be more organized, etc. For me, while this book was not the final solution, I'm keeping it around as kind of a good anthropological analysis of how French people eat. I'll update this if I make progress on my combo French-Intuitive solution!A TRUE Lifestyle Change for Longtime Dieters-- Stop the Diet!
by Zippy - 2010-08-13
I strongly recommend this book for anyone who is constantly "dieting" (and is sick it) and is ready for a true lifestyle change. I am a female in my late twenties. In my teens, I was overweight. I lost about 20 pounds prior to going away to college and kept it off; however, I remain unhappy with my weight. I am considered in the "normal" range, but at the high end, and am unhappy with my appearance. These stubborn 10-15 pounds drive me crazy. I have tried Weight Watchers, South Beach, diet pills, and have always given up quickly and feel frustrated by being restricted and knowing I am on a diet (which of course implies a temporary state and punishment). I love food and appreciate it, but know I have an unhealthy relationship with it, for I am inundated with feelings of guilt and frustration almost every time I eat. I am definitely an emotional eater. I eat primarily out of boredom or stress and know when I am doing it, which only makes me feel worse. I keep going back to Weight Watchers, but don't stay on it long because I feel counting points is aggravating, I find myself eating low points foods that are highly processed and not nourishing, and being hungry and eager while on it. (I know WW is great for some people, just not for me). Why French Women Don't Get Fat is a book that truly provides perspective that can inspire and guide a lifestyle change. It is right for someone who wants to reinvent his or her relationship with food AND eating. Although some have critiqued Guiliano for being "snotty," I find her points valid. I have learned so many tips that I will actively make a part of my life. For example, savoring food one bite at a time, cutting items you eat for no good reason and could live without (for me, pop--although, I drank diet, and chips), cutting back on those delicious foods we don't want to live without (chocolate, wine), and controlling or portions and responding to hunger. Most importantly, eating real food in reasonable amounts (ie. No processed food at all). I strongly recommend to read Michael Pollan's In Defense of Food to accompany Guiliano's book. While I feel Guiliano gives fantastic advise on how to change our perceptions of food, eating, and our lifestyle, Pollan's book does a wonderful job discussing what we should be feeding our bodies.... Food, not food products that are factory made and filled with chemicals. Pollan's book will give you insight into what you are eating (without feeling you are stuck with French food). I feel uplifted and truly excited to make a real change--to look at food and eating as something to be "respectfully savored," nourishing, and to begin fueling my body with real food in appropriate quantities for the right reasons. I wish everyone the best of luck! In Defense of Food: An Eater's ManifestoHaven't Read It Yet
by D. Rice - 2010-07-17
Yes it's true, I haven't read the book yet, but I have read the opening pages available on Amazon and am purchasing it on kindle today. I'm commenting here on some of the reviews and sharing my recent experience with weight loss after traveling in France and England for a month and a half during May and June 2010. I also lost weight during my travels abroad. Like another reviewer I ate a huge english breakfast everyday when in England and I had a little joke that I never passed a bakery or fish and chip shop that I didn't like! (And stop in!) Aside from loving the, "What can I get you love?", I truly enjoyed the delicate fried fish! (I usually passed on the chips.) And I found English bakeries just as delicious as the French ones, with fresh, buttery, melt in your mouth pasteries. In France I ate loads of fresh crusty bread and croissants DAILY! And when I say LOADS, I mean it. One day I bought a whole package of croissants (about 8 of them) and ate all of them before nightfall. Everyday I bought cheese as well. Sometimes I'd find a park to sit in and enjoy my meal, or I'd just eat a huge piece of bread while I was driving down the highway. I did a lot of driving through the french and english countrysides, and did some walking through cities like Edinburgh and London, but I can't say I did a lot of walking anywhere. In spite of all the eating I did, I lost about 10 lbs. during my trip, and a lot of it was in my waist and hips. I've wondered about this a lot. I was trying to lose weight for a year before I went traveling and couldn't, although I went to Weight Watcher's, went to the gym, and even had a round (15 sessions) with a personal trainer. Before I left on my trip I was on a gluten free diet for about 3 months. I did feel better, but the weight still wasn't coming off. I just couldn't get down more than a pound or two and if I did, it would come right back. With all the gluten in the breads and pastries I ate over in Europe, it's odd that I felt so good and lost weight. I do think that maybe there's something about what goes into our food here that might be causing some bloating, or something that makes it harder to lose weight. Maybe some pesticides used during the growing process, some food engineering process, some processing ingredients, I don't know, but there has to be something. I'd love to know if people who grow their own vegetable gardens have the same problems with weight gain, bloating, etc. Getting back to the issue at hand, I can't wait to read the book and add my REAL review! Thanks to everyone for all sharing your experiences and thoughts.
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